1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technology to display information stored in a storage unit of a computer or the like and, more particularly, to an information displaying technology to retrieve desired information including dynamic information as well as static information with efficiency.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, the following operation has been performed in order to retrieve a desired file from the files stored in a storage unit of a computer or the like.
First, a user points a folder that appears to include a desired file in view of a folder tree with a pointing device such as a mouse. Then, the user selects and opens the folder pointed with the click of the button of the mouse to display a list of files included in the folder in the form of icons or the like. If one of the files is considered to be a target one, the user points it with the pointing device. Then, the user clicks the button of the mouse to display a preview of the file on a preview window and starts software by which the file is created to display the file or play it back.
The user repeats the above procedure until he or she can find a desired file. If the desired file is not included in the selected folder, the user selects another folder and repeats the above procedure. In order to retrieve a file, an operation of selecting and opening a point had to be repeated over and over again.
There is proposed a technology to allow a user to understand various items of information about files selected by operating a pointing device such as a mouse only by seeing a cursor on a monitor screen (Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2003-15923).